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Twenty20 - Cricket: India v South Africa - Fifth T20 Preview

The ongoing Twenty20 series between India and South Africa has been quite the spectacle.

South Africa defied expectations to storm into an early 2-0 series lead but have since struggled to be as assertive, allowing India to record successive wins in Andhra Pradesh and Rajkot to level the series.

The teams now prepare to square up one last time in the format in a winner-takes-all contest in Bangalore on Sunday.

Squad changes derail South Africa's series

What: India v South Africa, fifth T20
Where: M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore
When: 14:30pm, Sunday 19th June
How to watch: Sky Sports Mix
Odds: India 8/15, South Africa 6/4

South Africa were seriously impressive in the opening two matches of this T20 series with India, recording their highest ever run chase of 212 in the opener before chasing down a target of 148 with ten balls to spare in the second match.

But they have since crumbled and lost their rhythm.

Whilst India have kept the same team together for all four of the T20 matches in this series, South Africa have been forced into changes, most notably having to bench key bowler Kagiso Rabada for the most recent match due to injury.

The most recent encounter saw India win by 82 runs. The hosts had posted a solid total of 169 from their 20 overs and South Africa fell significantly short, finishing on 87-9 with top-order batsman Temba Bavuma having retired hurt earlier in the innings.

With the way the last two matches have gone and given India look a more settled unit than the Proteas, the hosts look a decent match bet at 8/15 to take the final T20 and complete a stellar series comeback win.

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Kishan the pick of consistent Indian batsmen

Although not everything in this T20 series has gone the way of India, the hosts have looked fairly confident at the crease with a number of their willow-wielders consistently contributing decent scores.

Having led Gujarat Titans to their inaugural Indian Premier League title earlier this year, Hardik Pandya has performed well in the top order with scores of 31 not out, nine, 31 not out and 46 in his four matches against South Africa.

Shreyas Iyer, meanwhile, only posted four last time out but had posted double-figure totals in his eight T20 internationals beforehand and is another one who can hurt the tourists.

But when looking for an Indian top batter bet in Bangalore, Ishan Kishan could be a good selection at 11/4.

Kishan is averaging an impressive 40.77 in T20 internationals for India this year and should be a key protagonist in their World Cup campaign.

His recent form has seen him climb 68 places up to seventh spot in the latest world T20 batting rankings and he could again be key to India's cause in this decisive match.

Chahal can thrive with ball in Bangalore

The fact that three of the four Player of the Match awards this series have gone to batsmen demonstrates few bowlers have taken the T20 tussle by the scruff of its neck.

For South Africa, they were of course missing Rabada last time out and Lungi Ngidi, who bowled in the fourth T20, has been short of game time in the format.

They have mixed things up, meaning no bowler has consistently taken wickets throughout the series.

As for hosts India, they have been missing Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami from their attack for this contest, opting to rest both for the upcoming England Test.

Veteran paceman Bhuvneshwar Kumar has deputised well, taking six wickets this series, and will again be important while Avesh Khan, who had looked a bit flat in the series beforehand, came to life in the fourth T20 with figures of 4-18.

That said, there could be a better bowling-themed bet than backing either of those two to be India's top wicket-taker.

Yuzvendra Chahal has taken five wickets in his last two matches for India and no player has taken more wickets than Chahal (six) at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, which can often be a spinner's nightmare due to its short boundaries.

But Chahal knows this venue well and knows how to trip batsmen up here, having played there a lot during his seven-year tenure with Royal Challengers Bangalore in the Indian Premier League.

He could be worth a bet at 11/8 to take over 1.5 wickets in the match, while he could also represent value to be the Player of the Match at 11/1.

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